In just a few days of Zoe having her hands so busy with signing deals and contracts after the launching of ZOELVA, it was already becoming the busiest, most-talked-about destination in town.Shockingly, some of the most iconic foreign brands began to set up their flagship stores with massive storefronts and bold displays, their designs extravagant yet tasteful there, as if they had all been waiting all along. Top-tier local designers and retailers held their own space also, blending a cosmopolitan elegance with a touch of local charm. From the management to the customer service desk that began work in just two days, every employee worked with an intensity that matched the mall’s electric energy, and quickly adapted to the pace, which was astonishingly fast given how new everything was.With their unique uniforms and all of their movements conveying confidence, they smoothly guided people, answered questions, and handled endless transactions with ease. Media houses, and top magazines
“You are around,” the gloomy and almost fading voice mumbled with a heavy heart, as soon as he heard the phone click on the receiver of his call, just a few minutes after dialing. It was at the most unexpected moment when he had tried the same line he had been trying again and again in futility for the past months, that it went through and the owner of the phone answered. It took him willpower to hide his shock. “Yes,” Zoe's voice came out placidly, devoid of any overt emotion as she answered curtly. Malcolm's eyebrows arched so high in astonishment because he had expected a sarcastic reply from her or a brutal hangup, as his brain ran out of the right words to articulate as a response to the answer she gave him. His voice crackled through the line of sullenness, laced with an uncharacteristic mix of vulnerability and hesitation as he said the most random thing that came to mind, “Your things are still in the room as you left them,” he informed her as if she didn't remember. “You
The small studio apartment Ivy sat in was dimly lit, because she left the lights off, with only a small table lamp to illuminate the room. The air of the surroundings was heavy and filled with the staleness of days-old dishes in the sink as well as the faint scent of spilled wine on the threadbare carpet. Every surface of the apartment bore the weight of her gloom with stacks of unopened bills, piles of dirty laundry, and empty bottles left lying on the floor which portrayed too many lonely nights. For weeks, she had lived this way. Isolated, enraged, shrouded in bitterness, and sinking in despair, ever since the incident with Isla that made her get on Malcolm's bad side, and Andre's sudden return which she never expected in her life to see coming. And even if she had been so joyful to see her brother who was back from his supposed death, after they had mourned him for years, she could not believe her mother would quickly replace her with Isla, who she had condemned just a few w
ZOELVA’s luxurious structure, erected tall, reflected the shining bright lights of the afternoon sun from the east, with its luxurious designs radiating across the core and surroundings far and beyond the huge city. Inside, shoppers went from floor to floor, wandering wide corridors that were lined with top-tier brands, with staff moving around to guide and direct everyone in the most orderly manner. Groups of families made their way to food stands, their laughter and shouts mingling with the savory scents of sizzling burgers, crispy pizza, and sweet, sticky treats. On another side, fashion enthusiasts, elites, and socialites were gathered around numerous designer boutiques, their eyes fixed longingly on the glossy displays of haute couture, while others anticipated getting their hands on the most sophisticated top-notch tech devices. Amid the crowd’s awe and excitement and the hubbub of purchasing endlessly and engaging so many sections in the mall, a moment of stillness fell int
Seated in her new office, which was a masterpiece of modern elegance, was Isla, whose aura of calculated grace radiated strongly in every corner of the room. Rather than the usual custom-made suits she usually donned to the office when she was still the CEO of Hila jewelry, she was wearing a stunning turquoise blue dress, with its off-the-shoulder design this time around, revealing her delicate collarbones which were adorned with a simple but exquisite diamond necklace. However, regardless of how stunning she looked, her face was bunched into a disdainful mark, her left fingers tapping rhythmically on the table and her mind momentarily lost in some other place, as her eyes constantly darted to her phone which was before her. Barely a few minutes later, while still seething uncontrollably, her phone began to ring, and she quickly snatched it from the table. Instantly, her lips, which were painted in rich, pepper-red lipstick, curled into a smirk, as a hint of malice instantly flicke
Zoe returned home late in the night after a long day at work, had her bath, and changed clothes, before she went to the most quiet place in her house, which was tucked away in the farthest corner of her house, while carrying a bowl of neatly cut fruit in her hands, shortly after she went over some office papers in her study desk. Though feeling tired and stressed out with her entire body extremely sore, she knew she just had to visit the room to do a review of the last discovery she made. Turning on the light in the room, she moved to the wall by her Eastside, and instantly raised the white veil she had pulled over the series of photographs which were pinned in neat rows and newspaper clippings. Each was marked in red. Some had the letter ‘X’ written on it boldly and definitively, while others had circles drawn around faces in the pictures, and were connected with taut strings of thread that crisscrossed like a chaotic spider’s web.Carefully, Zoe sank onto the plush armchair that
“You want to find out the truth too, don't you?” Zoe stared at the cryptic and blunt sentence that flashed in her eyes as soon as she slipped her phone out of her purse, when it sounded with a soft chime signaling the arrival of a new message. She had just stepped out of her car after they arrived at the underground parking lot of the mall, when she received the message that had her pausing on her tracks. Her heart skipped a beat and a cold shiver traveled down her spine immediately she read it, as her head turned sharply to the left and right, to see if the person who sent the message was somewhere around her. ‘Who could have sent this?’ She wondered, her eyebrows furrowing high in worry, as she tapped the screen on her phone, ready to reply to the message and ask who the person was. However, she restricted the urge to do that, cautioning herself that it was not the time for impulsiveness, as she slipped the phone back into her bag, straightened her blazer, and made her way t
Sitting slumped in his high-backed chair, with the city skyline stretching out beyond the window behind him, Andre’s hand rested heavily on the armrests of his chair, his chest rising and falling in shallow, controlled breaths, even if the storm that was brewing inside him was anything but calm.He had gotten yet another rejection. Another blow to his pride. He had poured days into crafting the new proposal, painstakingly aligning every detail with the vision he thought Malcolm wanted for their flagship company. And yet, the same words were delivered to him again. “It doesn’t fit our strategy.”The words rang in his ears, colder than the polished marble of the boardroom where they had been uttered, and he swore he almost punched Malcolm right at that moment in his face. He made him feel like a fool again! He effortlessly dismissed his proposal yet again. “You have to be very cautious. Though Malcolm is sitting back, he is watching you with his might! Do not make mistakes. Just wai
“You don't call me anymore,” The voice of the lady on the phone filled with a silent and low resentment, questioned with a very low tone, as if what she was talking about was not brewing fierce anger within her heart. “You know I told you I have been busy,” the voice came from the other side of the phone.“Fuck you and your silly busyness,” Isla scoffed, the softness in her voice suddenly dissolving, “You pick up my call after days only to tell me bullshit? You think you are too important now? Too good to pick up the damn phone?!” A bitter laughter rolled out of her lips again, as if trying to understand the absurdity of the situation. “You are my plaything, remember?” her lips curved into a derisive smirk, as her voice went low while dripping with a menacing reminder, “I own you, and every damn thing you own! Every damn thing! And you are going to be doing every fucking thing I ask you to do every time I call. I shouldn't be the one chasing you,” she spat. A deep suffocating silen
Andre sat rigid in his leather chair at the office, as his fingers tapped with a furious beat against the desk before him, with his eyes burning with frustration as his face contorted into an embodiment of rage. Reports, flight logs, surveillance photos, and some other files were all scattered across his desk, some torn or crinkled at the edges from where his furious hands had gripped them too tightly. A half-smoked cigarette remnant rested in the ashtray, and beside it was a half-drunk glass of whiskey. Gritting his teeth so hard and unable to hold himself from the worries that had been storming through his head and mind, he grabbed his phone which had been lying idle on the table for hours, and dialed the number of his investigator as fast as he could. “Sir,” the investigator spoke up. “Tell me you have something positive already,” he demanded, his voice dangerously quiet and low. The investigator’s heart plunged into fear, as his voice stiffened a bit after hesitating for a
Barely processing what she had just heard, the beautiful young girl with stunning and distinctive shining, glassy blue eyes looked up at the person her mother was talking to, and was about to ask the question. “Who is she?” However, the child's eyes widened with recognition, her eyebrows furrowing in surprise, as she pointed directly at Zoe and blurted out with innocent certainty, “I know you!” It made Zoe’s eyes squint in confusion as they wondered what the child meant because she didn't remember any scenario of meeting a child, and it made her wonder if the child had seen her on TV or in a magazine before. Jasmine was equally taken aback too. “Raine. You probably had the wrong person,” she quickly cautioned her daughter, her heart thumping a little fast how Zoe and her daughter had met before. The girl, however, was already bouncing on her feet, as she freed her hands from her mother's own instantly, and moved to home Zoe's hand, who instinctively flinched, not expecting such
The day had drained her. From the moment she stepped into her office that morning, it had been one endless cycle of rescheduled meetings, unanswered emails, and entire reviews of files and documents. By midday, fatigue had crept deep into her bones and lodged fully there, and by late afternoon, she barely had the resilience to push on working further. And for the first time in weeks, Zoe decided to clock out of work early. Not work per se, but she decided to clock out of the office, because the next place she had in mind instead of home was to go sightseeing around her mall. She wanted to buy something for herself as a shopper and not the CEO. It had been a while since she enjoyed the amusement solely for herself and not strictly business. Taking the general elevator, she pressed the button for the second floor where big top restaurants had their flagship stores stationed, and the first wave of air that whooshed past her nose was the scent of fresh pastries, coffee, and delicacies
“Do you not think we have to remove Malcolm now? He seems so incompetent now, and it does not seem like he is ready to do anything concerning the situation on the ground. We are the ones that would take the fall for it!” a voice rose angrily in the room where some women and men were seated around a polished oak table with hushed voices and nervous glances. It was a man with silver-threaded hair in his fifties, who was a renowned top-investor in big companies. His eyes narrowed into a sharp, and angry gaze as he continued speaking, with his fingers tapping hard against the table, “We need to remove him. The stock is falling, the company is in turmoil, and he has done nothing to clear his name from those slush fund accusations. That silence. It is dangerous. I cannot hold on any longer,” he made his thoughts known to the others in the room. Some of the people in the room leaned forward with conviction, while others shifted uneasily in their seats, wondering if their discussion which h
Malcolm sat behind his imposing office desk with his mind a little lost in the thoughts of Zoe, as he equally worried about her, while wondering if she was doing well. He had not seen her at all the previous day, and arrived home later than he usually did because of some things he had to set out at work. He knew she would be probably home by the time he arrived, but he didn't have the guts to go and knock on her door. He just sat on the balcony of the room where he could see the roof of her house until he saw the lights to her house go off. He had been thinking hard and pondering on the excuse that he could use to go and see her again, and he also wondered how she felt concerning the few things he had done. He was curious and wanted to know her reaction to it. If she had angrily trashed everything- The food, tea, china, flask, lamp, and purifier, or she just ignored the fact that it was there and didn't even care, or perhaps, didn't mind that he did and had no strong feelings towar
The day Zoe had met with Jasmine and had embraced her with all her might, and drowned in the sweet scent of the body as well as her warm embrace, she left with a few strands of her hair. She felt so terrible doing that with her consent, but she wanted to be sure. She didn't want her life to be a lie again even if everything and traits about Jasmine pointed out that she was no doubt her mother. She just wanted the hope that truly she wasn't just misguided by a few coincidences. But instead of calling her and having nothing to say to her when she was probably bitter towards her thinking she was Emily's daughter, Zoe let herself sink into the memory of the woman she longed to call as the loneliness around her pressed in, and filled every inch of the luxurious, soulless space around her. While she continued to wallow in her deep concern, she scooped a spoonful of cereal that had sodden miserably in her bowl into her mouth, and forced herself to keep chewing, even if she wasn't sure sh
At the earliest hours of the morning, 5:45 AM, Zoe's eyes suddenly parted open as if some sort of realization hit her from her sleep. Her body felt heavier than usual, like she was sinking into the expensive mattress that had never quite felt like hers as she stared at the white ceilings above her face, which blinked against the pale lights that kicked from the floor-to-ceiling windows of her room. For some reason, as she lay on her bed, trying to grasp an unfamiliar feeling that somehow coursed through her body, she tried to comprehend why she felt a strange sense of relief even if she woke up to the sound of nothing. It was the first time in a long time that she had slept that long. She didn't even realize when she dozed off the previous night after she left the bathroom still lost in thoughts. But for the first time in weeks, she had slept. Straight hours without the endless turning, nightmares and incessant sleep breaks. She sat up slowly, pushing away her silk sheets that
Driving with an aggression and crazy speed, Isla floored on the accelerator of her car just moments as soon as the doors to the Meyers mansion swung open, and swerved in like a maniac under hot pursuit. Stepping out her car and grabbing her bag violently with her face scrunched up into a deep frown, she dropped her car keys on the floor as one of the butlers scrambled unsuccessfully below her to catch it fast. Not minding that her heels grinded on the poor man's hand, she stormed past and made her way into the mansion, the doors automatically opening at the sensing of her presence. With her heels clicking loudly against the polished shining floors as she walked past the huge first living room which had been desolate for quite a while because things were not quite the same with the people living in the mansion anymore, she began to climb the stairs that led to the hallway which was the way to her room. Turning swiftly to the right, Isla's eyes caught sight of her mother who was sta